FOR SALE: THE FASTEST CAR IN THE WORLD

Two Careful Owners

The Gloucestershire-based Bloodhound Land Speed Record project is looking for a new owner to take the team through to setting a new World Land Speed Record in 2022

For the second time in its short history, Bloodhound LSR (land speed record), is looking for a new investor after current owner Ian Warhurst rescued the project from administration in 2018.

Having pumped in much-needed investment, in 2019 the Bloodhound team began high speed testing in South Africa. The car smashed the test programme target of 500mph, hitting a peak speed of 628mph, validating the computer modelling used in designing the car and proving that Bloodhound has real record-breaking capability.

Ian, a Yorkshire-based entrepreneur, mechanical engineer and long-term Bloodhound enthusiast, said: “When I committed to take the car high speed testing in 2019, I allocated enough funding to achieve this goal on the basis that alternative funding would then allow us to continue to the record attempts. Along with many other things, the global pandemic wrecked this opportunity in 2020 which has left the project unfunded and delayed by a further 12 months.”

Ian added: “It has been a privilege to lead this team of world-class engineers over the past two years. I was spellbound –along with a huge audience around the world – as we tested the car up to 600+ mph in South Africa.”

The team now needs to install the Nammo monopropellant rocket, giving the car a top speed of more than 800mph. The car can then run on its specially prepared 12-mile long dry lake-bed race track at Hakskeen Pan, Northern Cape, South Africa.

The Bloodhound Project was launched in 2008 by former world land speed record holder Richard Noble, who had set a new record of 633mph (1,019km/h) in 1983. That record was surpassed in 1997 by a team led by Noble, with Thrust SSC driven by Andy Green which reached 763mph (1,227km/h).

Over the following 10 years, the engineering project developed, culminating in the public 210mph runs in 2017. But it’s an expensive process, and the project was placed into administration in 2018. It was bought by Ian Warhurst the following year.

GLOUCESTER CITY COUNCIL APPROVES £107 MILLION KINGS’ QUARTER BUDGET

Gloucester City Council is to push ahead with its ambitious £107 million plan for King’s Quarter in the city.

The plan will see Reef Group develop the Forum into a social and digital campus which the city council hopes will act as a catalyst for the emerging digital and cyber security sector.

The Forum proposals include more than 125,000 sq ft of versatile o ce space with a shared workspace club and an innovation hub designed for growing cyber businesses and incubator companies. This will sit alongside a 131-bedroom four-star hotel, gym, restaurants, shops, bars and apartments.

The 600,000 sq ft masterplan, includes a multi-storey car park, alongside more than one acre of public realm and landscaping work. The wider regeneration of King’s Quarter started at last year when contractors EG Carter began work on Kings Square. Work is planned to start on the first phase this spring.